Soul Calibur 3: Lost Souls
by Ronin Drake
Summary: The events of Soul Calibur 3 as I require them for my little universe, as told in a series of 10 battles. Who's blades will clash? Who will survive their encounters and who will fall? Find out in this prequel to "Converging Souls".
1. Maxi vs Astaroth

_Author's Notes: This story is meant to be a prequel of sorts to "Converging Souls". Essentially, that story takes place a year or two after Soul Calibur 3, but requires some specific things to have happened during that time. This is supposed to be my version of those events. I know, I know, "How weird is this guy, submitting a story about Soul Calibur 3 when 4 will be out by the time we see the end of it?" The fact of the matter is that I didn't start writing my first story until late last year, and none of this was in my head when the game was prevalent. If you're worried about being able to understand this story without reading the other one, don't worry. As nice as it would be for you to read both my stories, you don't need to read one to understand the other. Anyway, on with the description._

_This "story" will basicly be a bunch of oneshots all lumped together to form a collection of battles meant to take place in the SC3 universe and utilizing all but one of the standard characters (though I did use the missing character in my other story). Each chapter will feature a battle between 2 characters from the game, with winners as necessary, and sometimes not, for "Converging Souls." Within the confines, herein, characters will die as necessary or as I see fit. I hope you enjoy what you're about to read._

_Disclaimer: Much like everybody else on this site, I don't own what I'm writing about._

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Maxi vs. Astaroth

Footsteps echoed within the crumbling ruins as Maxi made his way through the temple. He had gone to great lengths to find this place. It was here that the monster was created; the monster that he had sworn vengeance on for when it ruined his life by…. It seemed like it had been so long since he remembered and his mind ached as he tried to.

After arriving at the hidden temple, Maxi had managed to find the leader of the heretical cult before killing him in a blind rage. Based on some of his last words, it would seem that all the destruction here had been caused by the creature he'd created. The fact perplexed the warrior as he descended into the lower levels of the pagan shrine.

Walking along the center platform, a few small pebbles fell from above and caught his attention. Maxi looked up to see a massive figure rapidly descending upon him. He managed to roll out of the way as it crashed into the ground and created a small crater. Looking back, he saw the red-skinned form of the ax-wielding monster he had sworn to kill… Astaroth.

The golem rose to its full height and turned to its intended victim as it exclaimed, "Damn, I missed!"

Maxi brought a hand to the nunchaku, Soryuju, at his waist as he shouted at the monster. "I killed you once before. I don't know how you came back, but I'll gladly kill you again."

Astaroth rolled his neck and cracked it from within his leather headgear. "Oh, it won't be that easy. I underestimated you the last time we fought and you're not gonna be so lucky this time." Letting his fury take over, Maxi pulled out his nunchaku and charged at the monster.

Maxi's initial attack was simply brushed aside, but he quickly used the change in momentum to his advantage. While he turned, he began to spin Soryuju around. Blending each attack together, he rained blow after blow on the golem who did his best to keep them at bay.

Not willing to wait for an opening, Astaroth made his own. Wildly deflecting the small weapon, he tried to bring his ax down on the vengeful warrior. The victim managed to jump to the side and avoid the massive weapon, but soon found the monster's hand wrapped around his throat. Rearing his arm back, sliding the man along the ground in the process, the golem threw him to the tattered wall on the side of the platform.

Maxi hit the wall with a heavy thud and his eyes closed in pain. As his feet returned to the ground he felt something press against his throat and hold him against the wall. He opened his eyes to see the monster pinning him with the long staff of his weapon.

With an amused grin Astaroth brought his face closer to the warrior. "So much for vengeance. You're just too _weak_ to kill me and take it." As he finished talking, he pushed his ax harder and harder against his enemy's throat.

Doing his best to push back against the staff and relieve the pressure on his airway, Maxi was losing his battle of strength with the monster. Needing his arms for what little help they were in allowing himself to breathe, he chose to lift his legs off the ground and push against the heretical creation's chest. The sudden force created an opening long enough for Maxi to escape and roll away before the golem's weapon slammed into the wall, causing it to crumble and fall into the waterways below.

Free to move again, Maxi returned to the offense. He began to strike faster and harder until the monster could no longer keep up with all of his strikes. Though the occasional blow did hit the creature, it didn't seem to react with any pain. Unnerved slightly at his enemy's lack of reaction, the warrior tried to keep up his assault. His attacks halted, however, as his nunchaku was caught within the golem's hand.

Gripping his opponent's weapon tightly, Astaroth let out a growl. "These little sticks of yours are becoming a nuisance." With that, he pushed his ax out of his other hand and onto the warrior. The immense weight of the weapon caused Maxi to fall back as his nunchaku was ripped from his hand. The monster then took a wooden handle in each hand and proceeded to pull them apart, breaking the tether holding them together.

Maxi managed to get out from under the large ax as he watched the golem chuckle and throw the remnants of his nunchaku to either side. He was then forced to back up as the monstrosity walked forward and reclaimed his own weapon. Now unarmed, the former pirate would need to be very careful about how he proceeded from now on.

Running forward, Maxi closed the distance between himself and his enemy. When the monster gave a wide swing of his ax, he managed to slide feet-first under it until he was on the ground just in front of his enemy's leather boots. He kicked out the inside of the massive red knees, widening the gap between the thick legs, before rolling forward and getting behind the golem. Quickly getting to his feet, he sprang back and gave a kick to the monster's side before it could turn around.

The fight continued like this for some time, with Maxi avoiding the heavy blows of his long-despised opponent and striking as hard as he could where the opportunity arose. Unfortunately, nothing seemed to effectively harm the inhuman creature. It would seem that a need for vengeance and justice were not enough to carry him to victory in this battle.

Astaroth soon sent the vengeful warrior to the floor with a sweep of the ground with his ax. Maxi's chest hurt after falling face down on the stone floor, but before he could begin to push himself up and return to his feet, a heavy foot pressed into his back and the voice of the monster rang out above him. "Oh, no. You're not going anywhere."

With those words, the foot began to push down into the floor and crush the warrior in between. Maxi cried out in pain as he felt some of his ribs break under the immense pressure. Just as the pain was getting to be too much, the golem laughed and lifted his foot slightly. The laughter did not stop when the pressure returned, evoking another cry of pain.

The creature would have continued toying with the now helpless warrior for many hours, feasting on his pain and anguish. This was cut short, however, as a bright orange ball of light appeared within the massive chamber, just behind its servant. A voice boomed from the ethereal entity and caught the red-skinned monster's attention. "Ker!"

Astaroth turned at the mention of his true name, keeping a foot on the nearly dead fighter. "Yes, master Ares?"

"Stop playing with the mortal! I have work for you!" The golem grunted his discontent at the order before removing his foot from the warrior's back.

Maxi was free for all of a second before the staff of his enemy's ax pierced his torso and impaled him into the ground. As the color drained from his face and the blood poured from his body, his life flashed before his eyes. In that brief moment he finally regained the memories of his friends and companions that he had lost in his lust for revenge. And as he drew his last breath, he remembered what it was that he had been fighting for.

Astaroth removed his weapon from the now dead body and addressed his master. "All right. Now that you've ruined my fun, I'll go back to my search for Soul Edge."

"Soul Edge will have to wait," the god retorted. "There is an ancient artifact and a young woman that will threaten its power. If she succeeds, then Soul Edge will be useless and I will never receive my prize. I'll need you to take care of the girl and the gem she carries with her."

The monster grunted his affirmation. "Sounds easy enough. I'll make sure she learns not to mess with the higher powers of this world."

"I warn you, Ker, since you have destroyed this temple, you can no longer be resurrected and I will not forgive failure."

Astaroth did not care for his master's implication. "I think I've just proven that I don't fall that easy," he said, pointing to the corpse behind him. "Besides, what could this girl do to stop me?"

Content with his servant's drive and attitude, Ares divulged the information he would need to find the woman and the gem. When everything had been said, the god disappeared and returned to the heavens. The golem took some time to heal the minimal damage he'd received in the fight before setting out to perform his master's latest bidding.

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_Author's Notes: Well, we have our first victim. Storywise, Maxi is actually incapable of going anywhere, which makes his story very stale. It is actually impossible to move his story away from Astaroth, so I decided it was better to get rid of him. Working with Ares, as well as Astaroth's true name, was a fun little side thing to do, I have to admit. As for the mission Ares sent his servant on, it has something to do with "Converging Souls" but will not be mentioned again, so don't worry. In our next chapter, we'll be seeing a battle on the sea. Find out more later, and leave a review while you wait._


	2. Rock vs Cervantes

_Author's Notes: In this chapter we are going to be seeing a bout between the White Giant and the Undead Captain (who is, funnily enough, just a smidge taller). I kind of connected both of their profiles so that they meet just about right after. Here's to battle._

_Disclaimer: It's amazing how I have to start this process all over again, but I don't own anything of the Soul series other than the 2 most recent games, and even then only the discs._**

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**Rock vs. Cervantes**

After Bangoo had gone off on his own to perform his chosen rite of manhood by swimming back to his home across the great sea, Rock had sworn that he would become a worthy father to the boy. As such, he once again sought the legendary blade Soul Edge, which had somehow affected his past. If he could claim it where many strong warriors had failed, then surely he deserved the boy he had cared for who would no doubt be a man when next he saw him.

It was this quest that led Rock to board the ship he was on. Those on board were seeking the treasure of the dread pirate Cervantes De Leon, someone who was known to have wielded Soul Edge for some time. Though it had fallen into other hands in the years since, there was likely some clue to its current location or perhaps shards of the blade itself.

Rock was below deck as they neared the location while the other sailors eagerly stood on the deck, hoping to be the first to find signs of the cache. He had only intended to go up when they had reached the treasure's location. When he heard the screams of the many people up above, he quickly grabbed his large mace and darted back into the open air.

A storm had settled overhead while he was in the ship and the rain fell like the heavens were bursting. But even as fast as the rain came, it could not wash away the blood spilling from the gutted bodies of every crew member on the ship. Looking to the see around, there appeared to be dozens of broken ships, haphazardly twisting together in the waters. Rock's blood chilled at this horrid sight as he tried to find what could have done such a thing.

The only unbroken ship, besides the one he stood on, was slowly passing by with the rails mere inches apart. There didn't seem to be anyone controlling the vessel and Rock felt something foreboding about it. Nonetheless, he jumped over the railings and across the gap while he was still able. Seconds later, the ship pulled away from the one he had been traveling on.

Standing on the deck of the ghostly vessel, Rock looked around for any signs of life, finding only the rain-soaked cabins at the front and back, with the wind-tossed mast between them. On the wall of the back cabin was a large skull made to be of human height with the jaw hanging slack and the stairs to the bow on either side.

Before Rock could continue looking over the ship, a large, rolling wave pushed it to the side and smashed it against a stone formation jutting out of the sea. The boat cracked and splintered while it teetered on the rocks before it split across the middle, separating the front and back sections, while the mast fell free from both and sank into the tossing waters. Both sections of the boat now floated independent of each other in the stormy sea.

Having been tossed around while the ship split, Rock was lying on the deck of the boat's back half. While he returned to his feet and looked around for what to do next, a figure appeared on the upper deck. Brandishing his twin swords, the man laughed as he leapt over the railing to strike at the warrior below.

Rock heard the laughter and quickly turned around to block the incoming attack. Stumbling back after having his attack repelled, the man continued to laugh. "Good, good. I have no need for weak souls… like those you were traveling with."

Looking at the strange, purple-skinned man that appeared to be a ship's captain, Rock asked, "Who are you and why have you killed the people on these ships?"

The captain's pure-white eyes seemed to bore into the warrior as lightning lit up the sky and a water spout formed in the distance. "I am the owner of the supposed treasure that so many fools have died searching for… Cervantes De Leon."

Hearing the pirate's name, Rock steeled himself and gripped his weapon tightly. "You will be sorry you challenged me." With that, he swung the spike end of Onslaught at the undead warrior.

Cervantes kept the large mace at bay with his twin swords while he tried to use their dual nature to squeeze out an offensive. It would seem, however, that his overly muscular opponent was readily able to dodge the blade before it could strike and each attempt would force the pirate to give up ground to avoid another blow. He was unable to break his enemy's momentum until he caught a downward swing between his weapons and gave a hard kick to the man's unarmored chest. With Rock recoiling from the blow, the pirate took advantage and began his barrage.

Rock did not perform well as he tried to block the attacks of the pirate. He could not move his mace fast enough to protect himself against both of his opponent's swords and received a few small cuts along his arms. Attempting to minimize this damage, he backed away from the ruthless fighter, but soon found himself out of room as he reached the broken planks that signified the edge of the ship's half and nearly tumbled over.

Seeing his enemy standing mere inches from falling into the stormy waters, Cervantes moved in for the kill. When he approached, however, the man regained his footing and dropped to one knee before thrusting his animal-styled helm into the pirate's stomach. He then wrapped the staff of his weapon behind the captain's back and charged forward. Cervantes struggled within the vice-like grip of his opponent until he was slammed into the large skull figure on the wall, nearly shattering it.

Rock continued pressing into the pirate until he felt the hilt of both his swords pound into the back of his neck. He released his opponent and reared back his mace only to smash it back down in an attempt to strike the undead captain. Though Cervantes rolled out of the way, the oversized skull was completely destroyed

Raking Onslaught through the broken shards, Rock turned to the pirate and shouted, "Where is it? What has become of Soul Edge?"

Anger came over the face of Cervantes as he responded. "I haven't known for a long time, but you will never have it. That sword belongs to me. It became mine the day I took it from that galleon's auction and slaughtered everyone on board."

With those words a wave of memory came over Rock. He now remembered the ship with so many people on it. He remembered that something terrible had happened and that his parents had told him to hide until they returned… which they never did. This was the series of events that had caused him to wash ashore on the new world which had been lost to him for so long, but now returned to fuel his fury. "You did not kill so many as you think! I was aboard that vessel and I shall avenge all that died there!"

Cervantes was unprepared for the amount of force the warrior now brought against him. Anytime he tried to simply block the large mace sent hum stumbling backwards. When he managed to avoid the weapon and slash at the man's large legs he didn't seem to feel any pain. The pirate adjusted the grip on the blade in his right hand, deciding that there was a very easy way to be rid of this fighter.

Before he could use his new strategy, however, the muscular warrior's palm wrapped around his throat and pressed him into the ground. Stepping over the undead pirate, Rock twisted around and tossed him into the wall were the skull once was.

Lying on the ground after his rough landing, Cervantes slowly began rising to his feet, swearing that this man would die today. When he had managed to get one foot flat against the deck Rock thrust Onslaught at him. Quickly, the pirate raised both his swords up to deflect the spikes and stood tall. He then leveled out his cross-guard and aimed at the warrior with intent to finish him.

As quick as the pirate had been, Rock adjusted the grip on his weapon and thrust the staff into the captain's chest, pushing him against the wall and piercing both. Cervantes struggled in pain as he was impaled until the mace was pushed in far enough for the spikes to press into him. After a few heavy breaths, he went limp with his arms dangling at the side and a sword still clutched in each hand.

Rock let out a sigh of relief as he looked at the corpse. This had been what he really needed to do to resolve his past and move on with his life. Putting an end to a man who had caused so much death was surely good enough to prove himself a worthy father to Bangoo. He did not need Soul Edge.

Walking over to the broken edge of the ship, Rock raised his arms into the air and cried out through the rain, "Did you see me Bangoo? I'm coming back for you!"

As his own voice died down, Rock heard a weak laughter coming from behind him. He turned around to see the pirate very slowly moving against the wall, still trapped by Onslaught. Cervantes lifted his head and raised one of his swords up to his sightline. "Come with me… back to Hell," he said as he pulled the trigger on his weapon. Rock barely managed to dive out of the way as a shot rang out and a bullet pierced the air.

Though the projectile had missed, Rock was terrified at the semi-living state of his enemy. Taking a few steps toward the pirate, he asked, "How is it that you still live?"

Cervantes laughed again, somewhat louder this time. "I am immortal. Can you say the same?" With that, the pirate continued his wicked laughter and let it echo across the sea.

Watching as the "immortal" captain struggled against his restraint and belittling him, Rock tried to resist the urge to do whatever it took to finish him once and for all. He eventually decided that as long as the pirate was trapped with his ship, he could do no more harm. Leaping off the edge of the boat, he began the long swim back home to Bangoo.

Meanwhile, the two halves of The Adrian continued to drift amidst the many wreckages until they were drawn into the watery tornado at the center of the storm. Water rose up around the disconnected sections and finally began to drag them under, taking the dread pirate with them.

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_Author's Notes: I never thought Astaroth was all that interesting a Destined Battle for Rock. It fit with the golem's story, but not with his. So I decided to give him this one and resolve something from his past. The ending here has some significance to the ending of "Converging Souls" and may help you to understand exactly what is going on there. By the way, I know I keep saying there is no need to read both stories and then saying how they are connected. Sorry about that, but trust me when I say that the next... 5 chapters will be without direct connection and you won't be hearing me build up my double standard. Anyway, next time the fight will be between two rather strange individuals. Which two strange individuals, you ask. Wait and see. Reviews are welcome._


	3. Voldo vs Yoshimitsu

_Author's Notes: The ongoing battle between Yoshimitsu and Voldo continues, but here it shall end. Got into the mind of one of these characters a little bit... which, given both these kooks, was a really bad idea. I'll probably get over it soon, and the hissing has already died down a bit. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the battle to come. Oh, as with the last chapter, I had some fun in actually getting them to the arena rather than it just being a natural place. Cheers!_

_Disclaimer: Ya know, I'd talk about how if I owned the rights to these things that I wouldn't be writing here, but knowing me I just might._**

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**Voldo vs. Yoshimitsu**

Voldo had once again left the Money Pit in order to serve his master's wish of acquiring Soul Edge. This time, he would not return until he had retrieved the legendary blade. As such, he was following the trail of people he was certain knew something of it.

After traveling halfway around the world to an island in the east, Voldo neared the blade he had once mistaken for Soul Edge. He could smell its evil aura. He could sense its very presence. Because of this, it did not matter how discreetly hidden the entrance to the thieves' den in the snowy mountain was. The servant would not be denied in the service of his master.

Cries of agony and torment soon echoed throughout the cavernous domain as Voldo tore his way through the many thieves in search of the evil sword. When he found its wielder, he would force them to tell him what he wanted to know.

As he entered the back room where the energy was strongest, Voldo found himself surrounded by dozens of thieves, much like the ones he had seen thus far. He was ready to tear them all apart as they closed in on him when a voice rang out to stop them. But with the voice, Voldo sensed the blade approaching. This was the man he sought.

The somewhat high-pitched voice continued as its owner pushed through the crowd. "Halt men! Stand back! I shall face this creature myself, for I have faced a far greater evil than this." Most of the warriors moved to the wall, leaving only the intruder and their leader in the center of the room.

The leader of the Manjitou, Yoshimitsu, wore a colorful suit of greens and purples. His right sleeve was cut short, much like the arm it would have covered. In its place was a wooden mechanism that quite effectively replaced the functions of the missing appendage. Covering his face was a white mask that rose from his head in five orange points. The eyes beneath that mask burned with a great hatred for the one standing before him.

Voldo wore a purple body suit over the middle section of his torso as well as his extremities. Little else covered his pale frame and the only armor to be found was on his shoulders. Purple straps circled around his head, covering his eyes and going across his mouth before connecting at the top of his hairless scalp. Despite being somewhat gagged, he managed to let out loud hisses and growls at the warrior he had sought.

Yoshimitsu turned to address his men standing at the edges of the room. "I have seen this villain before and I know what he seeks." Returning his gaze to the intruder who continued to hiss madly at his presence, he resumed his speech. "You see, this creature seeks my blade…" he said, pointing the weapon in question at him. The sword pulsed with energy and his voice grew much darker as he continued. "… And I shall gladly see him receive it." Voldo gave one more angered hiss before charging at the warrior.

Slashing his katars in every direction, Voldo gave his opponent little chance to mount an offensive. The powerful katana was forced to go between the two weapons as they came in rapid succession in order to prevent them from making contact with the masked warrior. However, it soon became readily apparent that the one blade was not able to keep up with the two.

The ninjutsu-styled samurai finally felt the brunt of his enemy's attacks when both katars were used to trap his blade against the ground and the servant balanced on his weapons in a handstand while he gave a vicious kick. Yoshimitsu lost his grip on the sword that shared his name and fell to his back on the cold stone. Half raising himself up, he watched as the creature dropped the katana and advanced on him.

While Voldo made his way to the leader of the Manjitou, one of the many thieves kept a close eye on where his feet tread. When the pale warrior had reached the exact center of the room, he pulled a lever and a number of gears kicked into action. A sectioned panel opened up beneath the servant's feet and he fell into the black abyss of the chute with a great hiss.

Yoshimitsu rose to his feet and retrieved his weapon before moving to the still open panel and staring into the darkness. One of his followers approached from the wall. "Sir, the tunnel leads to the center of Mount Fuji, where the earth itself boils. There is no way for that thing to survive down there."

Turning to his student, Yoshimitsu stared at him coldly through his mask. "You have more faith than I." Looking back to the tunnel, he waited a moment before speaking again. "Prepare one of the exits to the volcanic cavern."

Many of the warriors began to mumble in confusion while the nearest member was forced to question the order. "Sir?"

The masked leader did not look up at them as he spoke. "Much of our number have died today because of this creature and it is stronger than you realize. I shall be certain it is dead when I have wiped its blood clean from my blade." And, without waiting for his words to sink in, Yoshimitsu dropped himself into the dark tunnel.

Meanwhile, Voldo had managed to slow his descent by stretching himself out and pressing his katars and feet against the outside edges of the chute. He eventually came to a stop just short of its end where the volcanic heat began to rise and push the hot air against his back. With an annoyed growl, he tried to position himself so that he might make his way back up to the man who could definitely tell him something about Soul Edge. Before he could get too far, however, a sound came from above and that man came to him.

Yoshimitsu's feet drove into the pale servant's chest and the both of them fell to the lava pit below. They landed hard on a massive stone fragment of the wall that had fallen into the molten rock some time ago.

The two now rose to their feet… alone and with nothing to get in the way of their final bout. Voldo smashed his katars together and hissed while the masked warrior twisted the blade in his hand and said, "Thou shalt breathe thy last!" Once again, the warriors charged each other and let their weapons clash.

Metal clangs echoed through the cavern as the battle raged with neither side able to gain an advantage. Yoshimitsu's long sword allowed him to keep his distance while Voldo's strange style ensured that his motions could not be predicted.

At one point the warrior's blades became locked together in a power struggle before the colorful samurai tossed the katars to the side, causing the servant to turn around from the momentum. When Yoshimitsu pulled back his sword in preparation to strike Voldo fell back, planting his weapons into the stone and putting him in an awkward position.

He didn't remain in that position for long, as he once again balanced on his blades in a hand stand before violently smashing his knees into his opponent's shoulders and forcing him to fall face first on the ground. Pressing most of his weight on the back of the man's neck with one knee, Voldo pushed himself forward with his free leg and dragged his enemy with him as a loud crack sounded out. Rising to his feet, the servant backed away and tried to assess the damage he'd caused.

Much to the pale warrior's surprise, Yoshimitsu moaned and began to push himself up. When he had regained his full stature, it was revealed that a long, ragged line had formed in his mask. Feeling it with his living hand, he let out a shout. "Foul Villain!" Readying his blade, he stood prepared to defend against the strange warrior.

Voldo was incensed that this man dared to continue standing and defy his master's will. With an angry hiss, he began to thrust his weapons at the samurai.

Yoshimitsu quickly swung his sword upwards to deflect the katars. He then began to hammer down with the hilt. His opponent tried to protect himself, but the blunt force soon became too much and the dual blades were pushed back far enough to slice through some of the straps surrounding his head.

Voldo made a small retreat while he was still able, but as he did so the severed strands began to fall away… including those covering his eyes. For a brief moment his eyes were revealed. They seemed to be nothing more than empty pools of darkness that had ceased to function from lack of use. Despite their seeming state of disrepair, it seemed that he could still see something out of them as he quickly raised his arms to cover them, hissing madly and seeming to be in pain from the surge of light.

Making his way over with intent to finish him off, Yoshimitsu tightly gripped his katana and raised it above his head, ready to send it crashing down. "Heaven's judgment is swift and merciless."

Before Voldo could receive his final judgment, however, his eyes finally closed and he regained a proper sense of his surroundings. Stepping to the side to avoid the incoming blade, he began to smash his weapons into the ground in an attempt to take out the samurai's feet.

Utilizing some quick footwork, Yoshimitsu moved further and further back to avoid the swiftly approaching swipes of his opponent. He was successful until the servant changed its tactic, thrashing one katar up to repel the samurai's sword. With the other katar he connected a powerful backhand on the now exposed ribs.

Yoshimitsu fell back, tumbling and rolling along the stone after the heavy blow. Straightening out his limbs, he was able to stop himself before he could reach the edge or the lava beyond. Rising to his feet, he quickly stepped away from the rim and once again charged his enemy.

The fury of the masked warrior caused his strikes to come at an incredible speed. The servant was only barely able to keep up and defend himself. Even so, he was losing ground and having no opportunity to put his opponent on the defensive.

When the sword came at him in a powerful horizontal swing, Voldo again fell back to a position of balancing between his feet and katars in order to dodge the blow. He intended to bring his feet up for a surprise kick, but his enemy was not as baffled by his stance this time and did not give him the chance. Leaping up into the air, Yoshimitsu flipped over and brought his feet down on the servant's raised torso, pushing it down and flattening him against the stone.

Voldo gave a pained hiss as the samurai backed off of him. At this point it did not matter if he killed the man he had originally tracked as a lead to Soul Edge, for if he were to fall in battle now then his master would never receive his great treasure. With this thought in mind, Voldo set all the pain he felt aside and rolled forward to deliver a hard kick with both his feet. He would not be denied.

Yoshimitsu managed to stay on his feet after the attack, but again came dangerously close to toppling over the edge, this time in a narrow corner of the fragment. After stabilizing his footing, the masked warrior turned back to see his opponent slowly advancing on him. Deciding on a plan of action, he waited until the servant was close enough before dropping to a low stance and sweeping out his feet.

The pale warrior hit the ground hard with his hands dangling over the edge and the katars dipping into the magma. The metal blades quickly absorbed the heat and Voldo, out of instinct, released his hold on them.

His mind immediately began to rage at this action. _'No! Those katars were a part of the master's collection! He will scold me if I lose them!_' With no more thought then that, his hands dove after the lost weapons and instantly melted away.

Watching as his enemy recoiled in pain yet again, Yoshimitsu now approached and set his sword against the servant's neck. Voldo slowly turned around and fell to his knees, holding his burnt stumps before him. The masked warrior pulled back his blade slightly and lowered it. "Your master is long since dead," he said before driving the steel of his weapon into his enemy's chest. "And now, thou shalt join him in hell."

With those words and a final gasp, Voldo was kicked off the katana and sent sprawling back into the lava pit.

Yoshimitsu wiped the sides of his blade against his sleeve before making his way out of the volcanic cavern through a doorway his men had opened for him. He quickly drew up plans for a great acquisition. Now that this old enemy had been vanquished, the Money Pit would be easy plunder and would support the Manjitou's operations for many years to come.

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_Author's Notes: Well, victim number 2 has punched his ticket. Both of these guys had some strange styles, but since I'd already used most of Yoshimitsu's crazier moveset elswhere I decided to have him play the straight man to Voldo's insanity. Both of these characters are among my favorites, and having either of them die is a sad thing for me, but one of them had to go. Voldo dies here because the insanity that works to his advantage most of the time was the best thing to thematically destroy him. Hopefully he'll find some degree of peace in the next life._

_And speaking of next, our fourth chapter will have old schoolmates test their abilities to decide if one person's quest is over... or if the other's has just begun._


	4. YunSeong vs Seong Mina

_Author's Notes: The battle between these two was an absolute necessity. Basically, Yun-Seong needs to be taught a lesson and Seong Mi-na is just the person to teach him. After all, I believe she was on the same quest before Soul Calibur 2. This was largely a technical bout that was done so I could say I used every standard character from Soul Calibur 3, but I got a bit of story in there and had fun with it. Hopefully you'll have some fun with it too._

_Disclaimer: I do not own this Namco franchise and no amount of wishing upon a star is going to change that. _

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**Yun-Seong vs. Seong Mi-na**

Yun-Seong had decided to rest a while in his journey for Soul Edge after meeting with the wind priestess, Talim. They stayed together for several months in the abandoned water mill village, taking care of the remaining orphans, until she once again sensed the power of the legendary blade. The tandem traveled side by side in their quests before their ideological differences finally got the better of them and they parted ways.

Once again searching on his own, the proud warrior made his way to India in order to check out an old lead of a monster attack in the port. Shortly after entering the heavy crowds, however, a blow to the back of his skull rendered him unconscious.

When Yun-Seong woke up he was being dragged along a dirt road just outside the port city. He immediately began to struggle and was released. Rising to his feet and holding White Storm at the ready, he turned around to see the daughter of his old Master. Confused, he began to scratch his head. "You? What are you doing here?"

Seong Mi-na planted the staff of her halberd, Scarlet Thunder, in the ground before responding. "I came to bring you home. Not only did you leave the training grounds without my father's permission, you also took a part of his sword collection with you," she said, pointing out the blade in his hand.

Yun-Seong gripped the sword tightly and pulled it back. "That doesn't matter right now. I'm looking for Soul Edge so that I can use it to protect our country."

"What? Didn't you listen to what Hwang said about that sword? It is evil and nothing good can come of using it."

"He probably made all that up just because he couldn't find it. Everything else I've heard has said it was a powerful sword that could take down great enemies. That's what Korea needs right now. So if we're done here, I'm going back to that port to follow a lead." And with that, Yun-Seung turned around and began to make his way back to the city.

Infuriated by everything she had heard him say, Mi-na tried to calm herself down. Simply yelling at him would never get through his thick skull. She would need to be a bit more coy if she wanted to get anything out of him. "What if I could give you another lead," she called. When he stopped and turned around she continued. "What if I could show you someplace much more affected by Soul Edge than the place you're headed?"

Taking a few steps back in her direction, Yun-Seong voiced his hesitation. "This isn't some kind of trick is it?"

"No tricks," she replied. "Just a place I found when I was looking for you that I think you should see. We can decide what we're going to do after we get there." Mi-na could see him trying to choose which path he should follow as he looked between her and the port. Eventually, he gave in to his curiosity, figuring that he could always come back to this place if her lead got him nowhere.

And so she took him north, into the mountains. In the dead of night they found themselves in a ruined temple where ghostly wisps floated all around.

Yun-Seong looked around in awe. "What is this place?"

Seong Mi-na gave her reply as she guided him to a wide, flat area at the edge of the grounds. "This is all that's left of the Ling Sheng-Su temple. Years ago the power of Soul Edge rained down and caused all but a select few monks to go mad with rage before they slaughtered each other." She took a moment to let him think about all this before finishing her thought. "Can you see now all the destruction that sword has caused?"

He faltered for a few seconds. Those seconds ended, however, with him shaking his head and letting out a moan. "Gaaah. All this shows is that Soul Edge is definitely powerful enough to help our country."

Putting a hand to her head, Mi-na began to yell. "That sword can't help anyone. It's not in its nature. Jeez, I don't know what to do with you. You won't believe what you're told. You don't believe what you see with your own eyes. I should have known from watching you get trained that the only way to get anything through that thick head of yours is to pound it in."

"Too bad you'll never get the chance," Yun-Seong boasted. "Nobody can beat me. I'm just too good."

A smile formed on Mi-na's lips. "You sure talk big, don't you? Wanna place a wager on that claim? We have a sparring session right here. If you win, then you can go off to get Soul Edge and I won't stop you. But if I win, then you're coming back home."

Yun-Seong took White Storm in his hand and slashed it through the air a few times. "All right, but no crying when you lose." Mi-na said nothing as she held Scarlet thunder at the ready and prepared to fight.

Quickly closing the gap between them, Yun-Seong charged at Mi-na. Leaping into the air, he took his blade in both hands and raised it above his head in preparation for a heavy downward strike. Had the blow connected with its target it would have surely ended the fight early. However, it was an easily recognized maneuver and only met with the halberd's staff.

With his attack brushed to the side, the young man used the shift in momentum to spin around and sweep out his opponent's feet. She managed to hop over the incoming limb, but stomped down on the ankle before it could be pulled back. As the once boastful warrior cried out in pain, she thumped him across the chest with the length of Scarlet Thunder and sent him to his back.

Unwilling to spend any amount of time on the ground, Yun-Seong swiftly made his way back to his feet. He knew in his heart that Soul Edge could save their country. Because of this, he could not allow her to stop him from going after it. A new burst of energy surged through his muscles as he reaffirmed these thoughts and again went after his adversary.

White Storm became nothing more than a blur of motion as it repeatedly clanged against Mi-na's weapon. She began to back up slightly in order to avoid being damaged from the flurry of blows. He eventually got the better of her, feigning a swing of his sword before spinning in the opposite direction, smashing the hilt against the side of her head.

Seong Mi-na stumbled for a few steps. When she turned around to face the young man, she twirled Scarlet Thunder around to make sure he kept his distance. The halberd finally stopped with its blade scratching the ground.

Yun-Seong was forced to step back as the long weapon began to make short, low thrusts around his feet. It eventually caught up with him, though, and the flat of the blade smacked against the inside of his knees, widening the gap between. Before the dull edge of the steel could be raised to strike at the proud man's pride, he thrust White Storm down to keep the halberd pinned.

Trying to pull her weapon back, Mi-na watched as Yun-Seong raised a foot and put it down on the staff, attempting to force it out of her grasp. With expert agility, he managed to move all his weight on to that foot and twist around on it to thrust a kick into the young woman's chest. The attack sent her sprawling back while Scarlet Thunder remained beneath her opponent's feet.

A smile came to the young warrior's face as he saw his adversary rise to her knees and clutch her aching chest. Flexing a little bit, he began to boast. "You see these skills? It's all talent."

Mi-na regained her footing and did her best to stand tall. "It's a pity your talent isn't as big as your ego. Now, come on. We still need to finish this."

Yun-Seong looked confused. "Huh? You're not done yet? But you don't even have your weapon."

"That may be true, but you still have to hit me," Mi-na said. "Besides, you should know that anyone who goes into my father's academy learns how to fight hand-to-hand as well. Now… don't expect me to go easy on you," she said as she waved him closer.

The young man steadily made his way over to her before giving a few wide swings of his sword. He wouldn't actually try to hit her. His intent was to force her to move into an opening for him to deliver a hard kick. However, it seemed that she saw through that tactic and remained just out of reach.

Just when it seemed that Yun-Seong had gotten the better of her, she caught the incoming kick. While he was off balance and trying to figure out what to do, Mi-na turned around and swept out his other leg out from under him. She then used the chance to make her way over to retrieve her weapon. By the time he returned to his feet, she was already charging him with another strike.

For a time, they did little more than make noise as their blades clashed, since both were trying to be careful enough to not create an opening. Their weapons continued bounce off of each other in even contest until one managed to surprise the other.

Yun-Seong crouched into a low stance before raising a foot behind Mi-na's guard and sending her into the air. He soon followed her up, grabbing her by an arm and setting his feet at her stomach. Shifting his weight and pulling her with him, he managed to twist her around and rocket her into the ground while he landed safely several feet away.

Though Mi-na had hit the ground hard, she returned to her feet before she could be pinned and lose the bout. Nonetheless, she was in pain from the heavy blows she'd received thus far, and she wasn't sure how long she'd be able to continue. Despite the young man's proud and boastful nature, he did have the speed and skill to back it up. She would need to get beyond that if she wished to save him.

Allowing his opponent little time to rest, Yun-Seong again charged at her, ready to swing his blade. White Storm only made one arc, however, before it was deflected and the arm that carried it was twisted behind the man's back.

Seong Mi-na held him in this position for a few seconds while she gathered up her strength before shoving him forward a few steps to give her room to perform her maneuver. She leapt into the air and went completely horizontal, twisting as she went. Several revolutions were made on the way to locking her knees around the front and back of Yun-Seong's head. Continuing her forward motion, she began to fall and brought the young man's head with her, slamming it into the ground and causing him to roll over her legs. Her arms then lifted Scarlet Thunder and tapped the blade against his exposed chest.

"You've improved since we last fought, but so have I. It looks like you'll be coming back home," Mi-na said as she began to untangle herself from her opponent. When she finished she noted the dazed expression in his eyes before they closed and he passed out.

The next day, Yun-Seong did as he had agreed and joined Seong Mi-na on the journey home. He was not very quiet about it, however.

"Aww, man. I don't believe this. I think I deserve a rematch."

"Hey, quit complaining. You lost, fair and square. Besides, it's not like I'm making you carry all our bags on the trip back, right?" She paused and a smile came over her face. "That is, unless you'd like to make another wager…"

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_Author's Notes: Ya know, now that I think about it, Seong Mi-na can be just as boastful as Yun-Seong. She just has a bigger fanbase. Anyway, fun was had here. The little braggart hasn't exactly learned his lesson yet, but he's on his way now that he's had a taste of defeat. Coming up next, we'll scratch some Grecian warriors off of our list._


	5. Sophitia vs Lizardman

_Author's Notes: Another battle that stems from a Destined Battle in the games. When I originally conceived this fight I thought that these two knew each other. I have since learned that that is not the case. A pity, but there was still some good potential here. 2 warriors in service of the gods and how their stories differ. I think it makes for good drama. How about you?_

_Disclaimer: If you cross your eyes, squint a little bit, and tilt your head to the left... I still don't own Project Soul or any other company. _

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Sophitia vs. Lizardman

Sophitia's journey continued. Once again she was traveling to destroy the demonic blade, but this time she was not doing it for the sake of the gods.

Ever since that unholy shard had appeared at her home and caused her children to become incredibly violent, she vowed to take action and prepared to journey again. But it wasn't until just a month ago that she realized how important her quest was. That evil girl that had approached her and threatened to take her children and turn them into the living bodies of Soul Edge….

This was why she journeyed once more and this was why she was traveling east where there were tales of a blade made to destroy the unholy weapon she despised. In order to follow these tales, Sophitia walked along the Silk Road.

Midway across the great continent, the road emptied into a great shrine. Sophitia entered through the large stone archway, finding it eerily quiet inside. She didn't take more than a few steps before she noticed that the path ended in a round ledge. As she turned around to leave, however, a metal grate came crashing down and blocked her only exit. Apparently, someone wanted her to stay.

Sophitia drew her sword and held her shield at the ready, preparing to fight whoever intended to ambush her. A strange growling noise echoed through the chamber and a figure dropped from above. The warrioress dropped her jaw and looked on in absolute shock at what stood before her. "What are you?"

The thing before her was in a roughly human form, standing on two legs and having fingers. However, it was completely covered in scales from its pointed face down to its clawed feet, even along its tail. The lizard-like creature was apparently ready to fight as it had loose armor on one shoulder and across its chest, as well as carried a small ax and shield. The fanned feathers on the back of its head swayed as the monster moved around to get a look at Sophitia.

Within the Lizardman's mind, he saw vengeance on the god who betrayed him right at his fingertips. This was a servant of Hephaestus. He recognized the symbols of the gods. He could sense the Great Forger's influence. He could smell the holy ore in her weapons. All of these things flooded his mind and drove him mad with rage.

The creature began to wildly swing his ax as he closed in on the warrioress. Sophitia raised her shield to keep the weapon at bay, but found that her opponent used the same tactic on her sword. They were locked in this repeating struggle until he caught her blade between the steel and handle of his ax.

Twisting his weapon to hold the sword tighter, the Lizardman wrenched it down to try and force the blade out of the woman's hand. Her grip was firm, however, and before he could try again her shield rose to smash into his jaw. The sudden, surprising impact dazed him and he fell back a few steps. Meanwhile, Sophitia pulled back her sword, causing the ax to slip out of his hands.

Sophitia watched as the creature regained complete awareness and realized that the weapon was missing from his hand. Trying to take advantage, she stepped forward and gave a swing of her blade at his head. Instead of blocking with his shield or moving back to avoid the strike, the monster dropped down to a crawling position. From there he thrust his head forward into her stomach. Then, balancing on his free hand, he swept out her legs with both of his own.

As soon as his enemy hit the ground, the Lizardman hopped over to reclaim his ax, giving a growl as it returned to his grip. Turning around, his eyes once again fixed on the warrioress as she rose to unsteady legs.

After a few steps in her direction, he raised his ax above his head and leapt up into the air. The ax fell with such force that the Lizardman performed a complete forward flip before he began to fall. That force was wasted, however, as his opponent was able to sidestep the swing.

As the creature's feet returned to the floor Sophitia's shield rammed into his stomach. While he doubled over and clutched the affected area, she hopped onto his shoulders, her shins on either side of his neck. Before he could recoil and push her off, she twisted her entire body and produced a sickening crack from the monster's neck. Falling back, she pulled him down with her and slammed his head against the stone. Thinking the battle over, she stood and made her way over to the steel grate blocking her exit.

A low growl soon stopped her in her tracks. Sophitia turned around to see the creature slowly work its way to its feet. When it was finally standing, it rolled its head around before creating another cracking sound. With that, a much louder growl came and the scaly monster seemed to stare through her soul.

The Lizardman's mind continued to rage. This was not turning out to be the glorious revenge he had envisioned. But this woman would not stop him from getting what was rightfully his. The former human deserved vengeance after all the pain and anguish his god had allowed him to suffer. Tightening the grip on his armaments, he gave a vicious growl before charging at his enemy.

The creature's weapon came at Sophitia with such speed and fury that she could do little more than try to stay out of its path. Her options were limited, however, since they were standing on a platform with a sheer drop on most sides and a wall on the other. Still, she did her best to avoid getting caught between the ax and any of the pitfalls.

Sophitia began to spin with every evasion she made. There didn't seem to be a reason for it until she spun towards the monster and slammed her shield into its chest. While the creature's upper half was pushed back, she thrust her sword down into a scaly foot. The Lizardman howled out in pain and the Grecian warrioress knocked the ax and shield out of his hands before kicking him away.

Rolling on the cold stone in agony, the Lizardman had many thoughts going through his mind. _'The skills that I once treasured, that had made me a champion of the gods, that are all that remind me that I am still a human being… have failed me. But perhaps… perhaps it is time that I gave in to what I've become. It would be worth it to become the beast I seem if it would allow me to taste vengeance.'_ And with that, the man once known as Aeon Calcos let down his mental defenses and allowed himself to run on nothing more than his feral nature.

A vicious growl filled the air and Sophitia watched as the monster returned to his feet, seemingly ignorant to the pain. He looked between his sharp claws before turning his eyes to her and there could be no mistake as to what he intended to do.

After a brief charge, the Lizardman began to swipe his talons in every direction. Sophitia didn't dare try to simply hide from this fury behind her small shield. She used it when necessary, but for the most part tried to back away from the assault.

It was not long before the monster's claws managed to catch the warrioress's cloak and pull her in. Not giving her a chance to retaliate, he placed his hands at her waist and lifted her above his head. She struggled for a brief moment before being slammed down into the hard stone.

Sophitia closed her eyes and arched her back in pain. Those eyes soon shot open, accompanied by a scream, as she felt something tear into her leg. Looking down, she saw the beast tightly clenching his teeth on her calf. Desperately kicking at the creature's head, she finally got him to release and back away when her sandal caught him in the eye. This would not buy her much time, though, and judging by the way her leg looked and felt she would not be able to stand on it. Pushing herself into a sitting position, she tried to slide back towards a wall, shield ready to defend for whatever time was left.

The Lizardman looked to his defensive prey and grinned maliciously as he made his advance. He was only a few feet away from tasting her blood again when the steel gate's mechanisms began to start again and the entrance became clear once more. Not sure of what was going on, the monster began to back towards the center of the platform and spin around in search of the new intruder.

Before he could find the newcomer her voice sounded out from above. "Looks like you're out of luck, pal!" And with that, another figure dropped onto the platform, slicing through the beast's tail as she hit the ground. While he turned around, hissing in pain, she began to pummel him with her shield and push him towards the edge.

As the monster began to teeter on the lip, he gave a vile hiss at the change of circumstances. _'I don't like my chances in a new battle. But it's alright if I leave. I've tasted the blood of the Forger's servant today and I will have more before my vengeance is through. I think it's time I returned to my homeland and showed the gods the beast they've allowed me to become. And if the refuse to hear me, then it shall be at the cost of every one of their servants I can find… starting with these two.'_ With that, he turned and gave a mighty leap off the platform, reaching the columns on the other side of the gap and slithering away to make his escape. The new warrioress quickly tossed his weapons and still twitching tail after him before tending to her sister.

Sophitia had gotten back to the wall and was trying to use her cloak to wrap up her badly damaged leg, though she was having some trouble with tightening it given the position and the pain. When she had managed to get it loosely around the limb, she looked to the one who had saved her. She spoke with heavy breaths. "Thank you, Cassandra. If you hadn't showed up…" Her voice trailed off.

Cassandra sighed and kneeled down to tighten the cloak around her sister's injury. "You know… this wasn't supposed to happen." Sophitia looked up at her, confused. She finished tying off the makeshift bandage before continuing. "I left home so that you wouldn't have to and so that you wouldn't end up dying in a strange land so far from your family. Didn't you realize that, sis?"

Sophitia's eyes locked on to her sister, watching as she stood tall over her again. "Don't **you** realize that I'm here for the sake of my children and I cannot sit idly by while they are in danger? This is my burden and I must bear it." She tried to stand on those last words, but faltered under the pain.

Looking down with concern in her eyes, Cassandra made a decision. Getting behind her sister, she wrapped an arm behind her head and lifted Sophitia to her feet. "Fine, we'll do it your way. But if you have to do this, then at least we can do it together." After taking a moment to collect everything they needed, the two returned to the Silk Road to journey side by side.

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_Author's Notes: Lizardman still doesn't get what he wants, but on the plus side I'm certain that his tail will grow back shortly. A big part of this was a means to get to the little meeting between Sophitia and Cassandra at the end there. They should be traveling together, but I needed to find a way for that to happen. I'm pretty happy with it, and I hope you were as well._

_Once again I had some fun with the fighting ground. These places all look nice, but I can't help but question why these people just walk into them sometimes and what the purpose of these structures are. I'll refrain from discussing it in length here while you go and leave a review. Next time, we're going to Japan so you can probably guess who's gonna fight pretty easily._


	6. Mitsurugi vs Setsuka

_Author's Notes: The battle below is between Setsuka and Mitsurugi. This was another one of necessity, since if I wanted to use her then he was the only one she could fight that I could do anything with the story (it doesn't work if her dialogue is "get out of my way! I'm off to fight him!"). This is also where we start to see signs of the "mastermind" behind the story in this game._

_Disclaimer: The only way I could ever own Soul Calibur was if I gave that name to a pet... which would be very sad._

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Mitsurugi vs. Setsuka

Mitsurugi sat within the open wooden structure of the temple's lotus garden, staring intently at the shrine before him. He raised his cup of tea above his head, seeming to toast the statue, before bringing it to his lips while he thought about the part of himself that had been lost.

After returning to Japan for a short time and fighting alongside the Murakami Navy, Mitsurugi had left once again in search of Soul Edge. While he was digging through leads in Europe he was contacted by a dark-skinned man who claimed he had information and was instructed to meet him in an old clock tower. It turned out to be a trap and a battle ensued. Though the samurai was able to gain the upper hand, something happened before he could deliver the final blow.

The mysterious man with the golden eye had stepped to the edge of the platform and raised a hand between himself and the man who stood poised to kill him. His words came out coldly and without emotion. "You will never reach that sword. I place a curse upon you, warrior of the Far East." As his voice faded, his body melted into shadow and disappeared.

From that moment on Mitsurugi had felt the will to fight being drained from his body. There was nothing physically wrong with him, but his spirit was dwindling. This was why he had come back to Japan so soon and now found himself within a temple praying to the gods for a return of his passion.

His prayers were interrupted as he heard wooden sandals stepping into the shrine. He knew who this was, and even knowing of their intent his hand made no motion toward the blade at his hip. Holding more tea before himself, he addressed the woman who had come to kill him. "You're very good at standing out in a crowd. You should learn to blend in when you follow someone you intend to murder." When he had finished these words she gasped and he downed the cup before setting it down beside the pot.

Not even turning around, he continued to speak to his intended assassin. "You've been following me since I last left Japan. It's not that difficult to spot you. When you're here, your face gives you away as a foreigner. When you are elsewhere, your dress sets you apart from even your own people." He breathed deep and let out a heavy sigh. "There is only one reason that anyone follows me… vengeance. Many have tried to attain it, but none so far have succeeded. Today, however, I am weary of battle. Leave this place with your life and take your blade with you. You would be no different from all the others."

The woman, known as Setsuka, stood in place and frowned. She had spent far too much time preparing for this day and neither his words nor the objections of the one she had lost would stop her now. Adjusting the grip on her parasol, she voiced her rage. "You killed the one person who truly cared for me in my entire life; who gave up everything he had to keep me safe and content. And you expect me to turn and leave now when I'm so close?" The end of the handle in her hand clicked as she began to withdraw her blade. When it was completely free she charged at the samurai as she cried, "That's not going to happen!"

As the once hidden knife began to fall, Mitsurugi rolled to the side. His will to fight may have dampened, but the will to survive remained. Returning to his feet, he stood tall and turned to his assailant. He then pulled the katana from his waist, but kept it within its sheathe and held it loosely and low in just his right hand.

Setsuka's fury grew as he mocked her by simply standing there as if he didn't care that she was trying to kill him. "Aren't you going to defend yourself, 'Demon'?"

Mitsurugi was unshaken by her taunt. "You've already lost this fight. I recognize your stance and you are going to lose for the same reason that your master did." That drove the woman over the edge and she once again ran at the samurai with little more than vengeance on her mind.

The woman's range with the knife was short, but she was incredibly fast in using it; an especially impressive feat, given her platform footwear. Mitsurugi had dealt with speedy opponents before and was not fazed. He kept himself just a step out of her reach and only moved his sword as much as necessary. After one particularly overzealous thrust, the samurai stepped aside and let her stumble forward for a few steps. While she was still hunched over he rolled across her back, planting his feet on the other side and swinging his sheathed sword up into her chest, sending her to her back.

The samurai watched as she struggled to her feet. Pointing his blade at her, he spoke. "You've got some skill, but in your quest for revenge you sacrifice that skill for your hatred. Don't let your anger cloud your judgment and affect your abilities."

Setsuka clenched her teeth as she resumed her stance. "Shut up! I don't need you to tell me how to fight!"

"I'm just making sure that you do your best so that you have no regrets. I'd hate for you to think you could have done better and come after me again."

Again the samurai fueled her fury with his mockery. Her blade flew with many thrusting slashes, but was still unable to cut into her enemy's flesh. She was finally able to subvert his evasive skills when she leapt forward and hooked her parasol behind his neck and shoulder. Unable to easily step back, Mitsurugi was pulled toward a thrusting knife.

Mitsurugi's free hand caught the woman's wrist before he could fall into her blade. The two struggled with which direction the knife between them would go until the samurai thrust a foot into Setsuka's stomach, sending her back. While she fell the parasol still in her grasp cracked and broke against her adversary as it followed her.

Realizing how close that last attack had come to killing him, Mitsurugi removed the sheathe from his sword and placed it back in his belt. Shishi-Oh glimmered as he firmly held it in both hands and assumed his proper stance. He would end this soon enough.

Meanwhile, Setsuka held her stomach as she stood once more. Looking to her broken parasol she saw that the umbrella portion was damaged beyond repair. The sheath, however, was fine and was all she truly needed for her techniques. Returning her blade to its resting place, she faced the samurai and gathered her breath for another assault.

She only got in one heavy swing before Mitsurugi stepped aside and brought his katana down on the back of her wrist, opening the skin but leaving the hand attached. The sharp pain caused her to drop the knife and bring her hand over to stop the bleeding. Shortly after these instinctual motions were made she felt the tip of the samurai's blade press against her throat.

The air was incredibly tense as each of the fighters stared deep into each other's eyes from opposite ends of the sword. Eventually Mitsurugi pulled his katana back a few inches and motioned for her to kneel down. She grudgingly complied and the blade carefully followed her.

As she sat there on her knees, Setsuka stared up at the man she despised and prepared for death. But death did not come and the man just stood there looking down on her. When the silence between them grew to be too much she raised her voice and egged him on. "Why don't you just kill me and get it over with? Reunite me with my master."

Mitsurugi could only sigh as he watched the woman beg for death over the pain he had caused her. What she truly sought was some form of peace, which she had long thought vengeance might give her. Now seeing that revenge would not be hers she hoped for that peace to find her in the next life. The samurai, however, decided to do what he could to help her in this one.

"I remember well the night I fought your master." Setsuka's face softened as she heard these words. "His blade appeared as nothing more than flashes of light as we dueled. However, the style he taught you is based on surprising your opponent… a poor choice for a guard who must expect surprise and has little opportunity to give it. That is the reason he fell. Regardless, he fought well and had the honorable death of a warrior."

At the mention of her master's 'honorable death' Setsuka became enraged. "What honor was there in the death you gave him!? He lived on for months before his wounds finally took him from me! How can you say anything about honor for those you've killed?"

The samurai huffed as she questioned his beliefs. "I honored your master the same way I honor all whom I've defeated… by continuing on. By proving that they fell to the best swordsman alive." And as these words left his lips, Mitsurugi could feel the fire burn within him again. This was the basis of his fighting spirit that would allow him to overcome any obstacle, even the curse he'd been afflicted with, which even now began to dissipate. His focus was soon shifted from the rejuvenation of his spirit to the woman still at the tip of his blade as she began to speak.

"So, will you continue on after _I've_ fallen to your skills?"

Mitsurugi paused a moment as he thought on his response. "No…" He pulled back his katana and returned it to its sheathe. "You will not die today. Your master's death was enough. Dying at the blade of his killer is not the way for _you_ to honor him." And with that, the samurai turned his back on the woman and walked away. He left the temple the next day, leaving her behind to find a new purpose in her life.

The warrior soon left Japan, reinvigorated and driven like no other time in his life to prove that he was the best and cutting down any who dared to challenge him or stand in his way.

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Author's Notes: As you may have noticed, Setsuka didn't stand much of a chance here. That's because when I think about the practicality of her style in a full-frontal assault, it just doesn't work. I mean, the opening video of Soul Calibur 3 was great and all, but as soon as Mitsurugi blocked her attack there she was finished. Oh, look at me. Talking like I actually know something about martial arts and fighting. Given the nature of Zasalamel's presence in SC3, it seems fitting that he interferes with someone's attempt to find the sword he needs. Soon we'll actually see him work in person, but we'll get to that later.

Our next fight will feature the child of Soul Edge in a first meeting with the servant of Soul Edge. You can probably guess what's gonna happen when they get together, but I hope you'll be entertained when you actually get there. If you were entertained here, then leave a review and let me know about it.


	7. Tira vs Ivy

_Author's Note: This is a chapter I put together as a means of completion so that I had as many characters from the roster as possible in this story. After a bit of thought, however, I got what I thought was a good story behind the fight here. Someone trying to escape Soul Edge's influence meeting someone trying to spread that influence. But the story comes in on why they meet._

_Disclaimer: Oh, what a world it would be if I made money off of this stuff._

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Tira vs. Ivy

After discovering the true nature of her birth, as well as the identity of her father, Ivy Valentine locked herself away from the world for 4 years. It took her that long to come to terms with the fact that everything from the blood in her veins to the blade she'd worked so hard to create were a result of the evils of Soul Edge. When she finally stepped out of her home it was with the vow that she would destroy everything that had come about because of that sword… including, eventually, herself.

In order to prepare for this task, she needed knowledge. Because of this, Ivy gathered every book she could find remotely relating to Soul Edge. She learned much about the specific energies it emitted, but many of the volumes merely recounted tales of its many massacres over the centuries. She was almost ready to say she had learned enough when she found something very interesting.

It was a book that told of a blade forged out of the pieces of the evil weapon and purified. This sword was equal in power to its predecessor and held many of the same magical qualities. The idea of something good created out of something so evil lit a candle of hope within Ivy's heart.

Shortly after reading the volume, a man in white garments that contrasted his dark skin wielding a large scythe broke into her library and demanded that she hand over the book, claiming it to be a mistake from his past. When she refused a battle broke out between them, but he only fought long enough to take hold of what he sought. The tome burst into flames within his hand and he disappeared from sight, letting the fire fall to the floor.

Working quickly to keep the embers from spreading, Ivy realized that what she had read about in those pages was of great importance. She soon set off to find more clues on what she believed to be her greatest hope: Soul Calibur.

In the country of Spain lived a man who had collected many things dealing with Soul Edge. Thinking he might know something of the weapon made to battle it, Ivy journeyed to meet him. When she arrived at the manor, it was nearly sunset. The collector let her in and arranged to give her a room for the night, but they would wait until the following morning to discuss what she sought.

The night, however, did not pass as peacefully as either of them anticipated.

Ivy woke to the oppressive heat of a fire that seemed to have engulfed the entire roof above her. Charging through the bedroom door, she found herself in the near ruined hallway where portions of the ceiling were beginning to fall away and sporadic flames climbed their way down the walls. The path to her escape was on the other side of this passage.

Halfway across she was stopped by a small figure clothed in what appeared to be loose green rags dropping down from a hole in the ceiling. The figure rose to reveal a girl with aqua green hair carrying a large, bladed ring. She stared into Ivy's turquoise eyes with her own of a purplish hue. For a time, all she did was stand there innocently blocking the hall as the building came down around them.

Ivy tried to push her way through when the circular weapon swung through the air, just barely missing her. Its wielder quickly returned to her previous position and maintained her innocent smile. Apparently, the attack had been meant as a warning, but the countess would have none of it. "Who are you and what do you want with me here?"

"My name is Tira," the girl said in an extremely giddy, high-pitched voice. "And I serve the blade that you've been running from for so long."

Shocked at the nature of the one standing before her, Ivy did her best not to falter. "I'm not running anymore. I intend to destroy the sword you call master and the man who lives here may have information that can help me do it." She would have continued, but was interrupted by a giggling fit from the girl.

When she managed to steady her laughter Tira reached a hand behind her back and addressed the white-haired woman. "Oooh, you caught him on a bad day," she said with a smile that no longer seemed innocent. Pulling something from her back, she continued. "I don't think he's in any mood to talk." With that, she tossed a bloody, severed hand to the ground.

Ivy clenched her teeth and steeled herself against the sight of the disembodied hand. Her eyes rose to the girl and she spoke with as much bile in her voice as she could muster. "I'll ask you one more time, you little harlot. What do you want from me?"

Tira's gleeful expression faded away and her eyes gained a much more piercing stare. Her voice was much deeper as she answered the question. "You were born for a purpose. It's time you gave in to it. It's time for you to carry Soul Edge and spread its glory across the world."

Ivy spat at the ground. "I refuse to take part in that sword's evil any more."

The girl in green rags moaned her discontent. "Aww, there's no need for a conscience." She spun her ring around until it was held stiffly behind her, ready to be swung with a charge. "We'll need to get rid of that," she cried as she broke into a run.

The ringblade was quickly deflected by Ivy's sword. With this opening, the countess flicked her wrist to cause Valentine to lengthen into its chain form. Her opponent turned around to see the extended blade swinging wildly through the hallway.

With incredible agility, Tira danced around the whip-like weapon's advances or allowed her ring to absorb the brunt of its force. Every snaking motion allowed her to inch her way toward the woman who could not back down, for there was no place to retreat but into the approaching flames. When the girl was close enough, she spun around, raising her blade to deflect an attack, and kicked out a leg.

Ivy stumbled and dropped down to one knee after the attack. Before she was able to stand again, she saw the inner curve of the circular steel weapon go down in front of her eyes and hook under her chin. It steadily pulled her back, keeping her off balance, until it finally tugged with enough persistent force to pull her over the girl's crouching body and send her tumbling to the floor.

Rolling onto her back, Ivy struggled to maintain her senses. When she became aware of her surroundings again she saw the girl leaping into the air, almost brushing against the burning ceiling, and dive down with her knee holding the edge straight. Before the blade could hit her, however, the countess sprang out of its path, leaving Tira to crash into the ground.

The servant girl did not suffer from her fall, though, and even seemed to land delicately, despite the ferocity of her attack. Seconds after her landing the sectional blade of her opponent swung low and wrapped around her ankle. It pulled her down and began to drag her along the ground until she firmly held her ring and smashed it into the cable connecting the sword's many parts, severing the portion about her feet from the rest.

Once free of the blade, Tira began to spin her ring around as she neared the taller woman. Most of these motions were actually distraction, for when she was close enough to actually strike she flipped forward, bringing her feet down on her opponent's guard. Afterwards, she twisted her body around to bat the woman away with the side of her weapon.

Finding herself on the floor again, Ivy could hear the taunting voice of the girl, having regained its giddy qualities. "You're not doing so good. You'll have to do much better if you want to come close to beating Soul Edge. That's when it will find you worthy and take your body as its own."

"No," screamed Ivy as she clenched her fist around the hilt of her blade and slammed it into the ground. As she did so, the magic of her weapon caused it to reform into an ordinary sword, even drawing in its disconnected portion. She then returned to her feet and continued to shout. "Every breath I have taken since I discovered my lineage has been with the hope that it did not define me, that it would not make me the monster that my father was! But if that hope means nothing then I will fight to my last to see that I am not taken so easily as you've ordained!" With that, she charged at Soul Edge's servant.

Valentine fell with speed and ferocity behind it, only to be blocked as Tira rose her steel ring. Ivy had expected this, however, and quickly reached through the hole to clutch her enemy's throat with the claw-like fingers of her bronze, shoulder length gauntlet. She pulled her closer and tightly squeezed the frail neck, briefly considering strangling her to death when the girl finally managed to struggle free and get a few steps away.

The countess soon made it clear that escape would not be so easy. Her sword made a wide arc over her head, extending as it went and reached out to wrap around the top of the ring. A quick pull sent her off balance and open for an armored fist to thrust into her exposed stomach. Ivy watched her collapse to the floor and taunted the gasping heap. "What's the matter? I thought your master was powerful. Surely, he'd expect the same of his _dog_."

Fury filled Tira's mind as she scratched her ring along the ground and pushed back onto her feet. Once standing, she tossed her weapon up towards the burning ceiling and Ivy watched it rise. The diversion had worked, allowing the girl's slender foot to push under her opponent's guard and into her stomach.

While the older woman doubled over, Tira caught her blade as it fell and spun around with a low swing to swipe out the legs of her enemy. Ivy was laying face down in pain when a hand clutched her ivory hair and lifted her head just enough to slip the ringblade around and set the inner curve at her throat. The next thing she felt was a foot at the back of her neck pushing down, causing her to cough and sputter.

Tira gleamed as she toyed with the woman's life, bringing her close to suffocation and then loosening the pressure to allow air back into her lungs. Her deep voice returned to toy with the victim. "I know that somewhere in the back of your mind you think I won't kill you, since that would mean denying Soul Edge its chosen host. But you should know that my master doesn't need to take your body _alive_." She gave an extra press on that last word.

"Your father is… 'living' proof of that," she said, eliciting a muffled gasp from the woman under her foot. "He has long since risen from death. And he walks, and he sails, and he _kills_… all in the name of this great power. Soon you will join him, but you will surpass his glorious terror."

Ivy's mind screamed. Even in death she would have no peace. She tried to reach back to pull away the foot at her neck, but faltered when another push took away her breath. Her limbs were failing, but she had to try everything she could.

Tightly gripping Valentine's hilt, Ivy extended her will into the blade. With no physical provocation, the steel segments lifted off the ground and shot towards the girl, wrapping around her ankle. It pulled with enough force for her to fall over her blade and tumble onto her back.

While she still had the opening, Ivy returned to her feet and sent her sword up to take hold of one of the roof's support banisters. Badly damaged by the steadily strengthening flame, it gave with one sharp tug, taking several other beams and a portion of the ceiling with it. The debris came down between the two fighters in an explosion of sound and ash.

The women stood on either side of the flaming wreckage, unharmed by its destructive fall. Each could make out the other's face through a gap in the broken wood filled with fire. Only the servant to the evil blade spoke. "You cannot change what you are. You are a child of Soul Edge and one day... you will be taken." With those words, she turned away and disappeared from view. As Ivy followed suit and made her escape, her only hope was that those words could be proven wrong.

At the next sunrise, Ivy looked over the ashes of the manor. She couldn't hope to find a better archive of information, but since she had learned of the spirit sword she chanced to think in the back of her mind that she might not need anything else.

Back in her own home, Ivy began construction of a device that would detect the approximate opposite of Soul Edge's energies. She would find Soul Calibur and perhaps, with the help of alchemy, it would save her from what she was born to become.

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_Author's Note: __Since neither of these characters could die, due to this being a prequel to "Converging Souls" where they both appear, and neither would leave the other alive in that situation, I had to end it with a stalemate. Sorry if any of you found that anti-climactic._

_You may or may not have noticed, but I'm actually a fan of Ivy. For the record, up until after the fight with Zasalamel I didn't change or add anything to her storyline. That is where I think she shines... her story. Say what you will about her outfits, but her story stands strong, in my opinion at least._

_Coming up next time, we're going to have an interesting combination for the fight: a vampire and a priest... well, priestess. Leave a review while you pick through that thin veil over the actual names._


	8. Raphael vs Talim

_Author's Notes: Yet another chapter based off of a destined battle from the game, though when I put these two together for a fight I didn't know that at the time. I just kinda saw the potential for an interesting dynamic between these two. We'll see if you agree after you read._

_Disclaimer: Money is not being made off of this, so I don't need to say that Soul Calibur doesn't belong to me... wait... dammit!_

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Raphael vs. Talim

After parting ways with Yun-Seong, Talim continued to search for the evil blade on her own. Eventually, she began to think back on the orphans she'd left behind for this journey. Remembering all the terrible things that had happened within that village to leave the children all alone, only for her to abandon them all over again became too much for her to bear. She was left with no choice in her heart but to return.

Back at the water mill village, she tended and cared for the children once more until something came to her on the winds. A man with a dark soul was approaching, intent on finding the piece of Soul Edge that had caused the calamity here. He would not find it, but the residual energies were enough to make him believe it still remained… and this one was more than willing to kill for it.

Quickly ushering the children to hide, Talim grabbed her elbow blades, Syi Salika and Loka Luha, and prepared to meet this man in the cobbled streets. She took a deep breath and muttered a short prayer for what was to come. "Wind… guide me."

When the man arrived, he easily broke through the flimsy gate and made his way between the buildings. Soon after his intrusion, he came face to face with the guardian of the children. She scanned him up and down to see what she was up against.

He stood over a foot taller than the girl and his chest was covered in a plate like armor that tapered down to his waist. Over that he wore a green coat complete with a cape. Loosely carried in his left hand was a long sword with a hand guard just before the hilt. But the most striking feature of this man was his supremely pale complexion and his bright red eyes, which were fixated on her. Before any words were spoken, the wind picked up and gave Talim one last piece of information; this man was named Raphael.

The pale man inhaled deeply through his nose as he looked all around. "This place reeks of Soul Edge's terror. It has been here… and you," he said with a point of his sword, "are going to tell me where it has gone."

Talim tightened the grip on her weapons, knowing what her response would prompt. "I could never help someone like you find that sword. The terrible things you've done would only be made worse if that evil were allowed in your hands."

Unexpectedly, Raphael seemed to remain calm, but his face spread with a malicious grin as he adjusted his grip on the sword in his left hand. "If you insist on causing me trouble, then I suppose I'll have a little fun." He charged forward as he finished his words to begin the battle.

The sound of clanging weapons rang through the village and was all the children could hear from their hiding place. The man's sword moved quickly, attempting to pierce Talim's defenses, but her own speed coupled with the agility of her two blades allowed her to keep every strike from hitting. When she began to spin them around their handles, she was able to deflect his attacks far enough away to send out her own.

Twisting and turning around along with her weapons, Talim forced the man to step back every now and then to avoid harm. Though he had evaded most of her attacks, she had managed to put a few new scratches in the armor on his chest. But when she looked up to his face she saw that he was not worried. In fact, the calm evil grin had never left. A chill ran down her spine and she faltered as she wondered what it would take to get those red eyes to show any doubt.

Raphael capitalized on this moment as he stepped to the side and gave a thrust of his sword, hooking it below an arm and the point just barely touching the neck. Talim whimpered as she thought the man was about to kill her, but only found him staring at her with some interest. He shifted himself slightly and let a short laugh escape his lips. "I'm in a pleasant mood… Let us continue our game." With a twist of his body and a motion of his blade, the girl tumbled forward onto her back.

Unsure of why he had not simply run her through, other than for his own sadistic pleasure, Talim would not waste this chance and quickly rose to her feet. Not willing to risk getting caught in that kind of position again, she called on the winds that they might stay with her in this fight.

After a few quick swings of her elbow blades the wind priestess jumped up to flip over with a heavy strike. Her attack was stopped short, however, as her weapons met with the sword raised above the man's head. But she did make something of the attack, grabbing onto his collar and pressing her feet into his stomach as she continued to fall. The weight and leverage pulled him down until Talim's back was on the ground when her feet tossed him up, only to fall onto his back.

Clenching his teeth, Raphael stood again to face the girl who had surprised him. She was more skilled than he had thought and though he towered over her she was still capable of doing him harm. He would have to be more careful with how he handled this one.

His thoughts were interrupted as Talim charged at him. Forced into a sudden defensive, Raphael was unprepared for the speed of her attacks and one swipe made it past his guard and drew a line of blood beneath his right eye. As the pain tore through his system he gave a wide swing of his blade before he backed away.

Bringing his free hand to the wound, Raphael stared in disbelief at the blood now trickling from his glove. Talim watched as that shocked expression turned into a smile, hearing the maniacal laughter that soon followed. "How foolish of you," he said still staring at his palm, "to anger me." With that, he lapped up the blood still within his grasp and looked back at her with his blade at the ready.

Forgoing the dance-like grace he usually used, Raphael now swung wildly, hoping to overpower the girl. The sudden change in tactics was working as Talim was continuously backing away and any physical defense against the attacks would force her back a step. It wasn't until she blocked an overhead strike that she found an opening to exploit.

While the pale man's arm was still raised Talim sent the short end of her weapons into his stomach. After doubling over to clutch the area he received another blow as she spun around to catch him in the back of the head. With her opponent now on his hands and knees before her, the wind priestess jumped up and pressed her feet into his back. Though he obviously strained under the sudden weight, he refused to submit and go completely flat on the ground. It didn't entirely matter, as she dropped forward and sprang her legs back to catch him in the ribs, performing a somersault and sending him rolling along the street from the impact.

Thinking her adversary incapacitated, Talim moved over to his body to do what needed to be done. She was surprised to find him still alert and mobile and suffered a slash to her left wrist as he returned to his feet. The wound caused her to drop the weapon in that hand and the man continued his attack with such speed that she had no chance to retrieve it.

Raphael watched as the girl struggled to defend herself with only half her arsenal. She relied heavily on spinning her one weapon around in order to keep his blade from getting too close. It was not enough, however, and she was pushed further and further away. When he thought he'd tired her out and created an opening, he pulled back his sword for a thrust.

Despite appearances, Talim was not without energy and bent around the piercing strike, letting it come mere inches from her skin. She then wrapped her arms around the forward limb and brought her feet up to its shoulder, again pulling him to the ground and sending him to his back. This time, however, she followed up by shifting herself to sit on his chest and bringing down blows from both her balled fist and the blunt stub of her weapon.

This assault continued until Raphael got his right hand up to latch onto the girl's throat. She stopped as her airway closed and tried to pull the hand away. When his grip was firm enough, he tossed her off of his body and got back to his feet. His red eyes glared as she did the same.

Talim immediately tried to regain control of the fight. Unfortunately, her first swing was caught by the pale man's blade while his knee rose into her stomach. He then kicked her body to the ground and spat out the words, "Realize your place in this world."

Pushing herself off the stone, Talim held onto her aching body and tried to stand defiantly before the man that had simply overpowered her for most of the fight. A light of hope came to her as she remembered that she had something on her side that he could never defeat with strength alone.

After a short run to build up speed, the wind priestess leapt into the air with her blade above of her head, seeming to prepare another downward strike. But she pulled back her arm before she could meet Raphael's defense and flipped over to send a heavy kick into his chest, knocking him off his feet. Bouncing off of her initial attack, the wind carried Talim forward as she flipped over again and came down with all her weight on the man's ribs.

When Raphael no longer felt her weight pressing down on him, he slowly moved back to his feet. His motions were pained and he was certain that one of his ribs was broken. Looking back to the girl that had caused him this pain, the last thing he saw was her leaping towards him with a thrust of her weapon to strike him in the face. After that his sight went black and he fell unconscious.

His eyes opened again to the sight of the girl standing over him. But something was wrong here. They were now on the inside of a building and he seemed to be lying in a bed. That wasn't entirely it, however. He felt… different.

Talim watched him struggle to sit up so that he might see what had happened. He was without his chest piece and shirt and beneath the bandages around his ribs was skin of a normal hue. He looked to his other features and found all of his skin matched and his elongated teeth were gone.

When he began to search for something that might be around the bed, Talim interrupted him. "Your eyes are blue now. I assume that's what they were before whatever it was that happened."

Raphael merely stared at his hands. It took a moment before he voiced the question raging through his mind. "How?"

"I released the evil taint from your body and scattered it on the winds. I'd done it once before, but never with so much." She paused and looked to him as he continued to stare at his hands. "You don't have to do all those terrible things anymore."

Suddenly a light flashed in his eyes and he leapt out of the bed, moving toward the girl and pinning her against the wall with his hand at her throat. His breath was ragged and heavy as he spoke. "You will come with me… and you will help Amy."

"What," Talim said as confusion mixed with the fear in her eyes.

"Every thing I have done, every terrible deed you speak of, has been for her sake. She saved my life… and now you will help me to save hers." He stopped as a whimpering noise caught his attention. Keeping the girl pinned, he turned to see the frightened faces of the many orphans of the tragic village as they huddled on the other side of the large room.

Talim was still gasping for air when his eyes returned to her, brimming with just as much vileness as before she helped him. Raphael leaned close to whisper in her ear. "If you refuse me, then every last one of these children will be slaughtered."

Eyes widening in shock at this ultimatum, Talim again heard the four words that made her only choice. "You will help Amy."

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Author's Notes: The fact of the matter is that Raphael was an evil bastard before he got anywhere near Soul Edge or became a vampire. I mean, his SC2 ending said he turned the entire world into a realm of evil just for that one girl. However, Amy is still at the heart of his intentions and I wanted to show that. Ya know, I'm not really sure who to say wound up winning in the end. If you wanna say one way or the other leave a review and let me know. In the next chapter I'll be setting up for the ending. To do that we're gonna see a rematch to a fight we never saw but heard so much about. Given the limited number of characters left you should be able to guess who I'm talking about.


	9. Kilik vs Zasalamel

_Author's Notes: It's just about time for things to come to an end. Because of that our story leads us to the Lost Cathedral, where everyone's Tale of Souls ended. The two fighting here have met once before, with dismal results for one. Can the tides be changed or will lifetimes of experience maintain the edge? Read on and find out._

_Disclaimer: At this point it's merely compulsion that makes me say I don't own Soul Calibur._

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Kilik vs. Zasalamel

Kilik and Xianghua had been tracking the man carrying Soul Edge for some time now. Once again they were prepared to do battle with that evil blade. Their journey now took them to a grand cathedral with a wide river flowing under its base.

As the two entered they could feel the energies of what they sought to destroy all throughout the structure. But as their focus was drawn a floor tile sank under Kilik's foot and a lout clicking noise rang out overhead. Without taking the time to think, Xianghua charged forward and pushed her companion out of the way, leaving the trap to fall on her with a loud clang.

"Xianghua," Kilik called out as he returned to his feet and turned around. The trap was a cage fashioned out of iron bars, leaving her unharmed within. "Are you all right," he asked, to which she nodded in response. Taking hold of the bars, he continued. "Come on. We have to keep moving." He began to try tilting the construct, to no avail, when the sound of clashing steel echoed down the halls.

Both of them focused on the direction the sound came from before looking back to each other, realizing a decision had to be made. Xianghua broke the silence between them and made that decision. "You go on without me. I can break myself out of here while you keep Soul Edge busy." Hesitation showed in Kilik's face. "Go," she shouted as she set her sword to work on one of the bars.

Kilik's eyes hardened and he nodded before turning to accomplish what he set out to do. He charged through the hall with Kali-Yuga in hand and prepared to do battle with Soul Edge alone.

He passed several rooms, drawing closer to the noise while the sunlight covered less and less of the walls, until the doors before him suddenly slammed shut. Kilik pounded the wooden portal and tried to open it in vain when a deep, familiar voice rang out behind him.

"I'm impressed that you've made it this far." Kilik turned to see the man who had introduced himself as Zasalamel floating down from the ceiling, cloaked in a wavering purple aura. This was the man who had nearly killed him several months earlier. His fists clenched as the dark-skinned man touched the ground and continued. "You are not worthy of witnessing this glorious event. Leave this place at once."

"You again," Kilik said as rage coursed through his veins, the crystal around his neck keeping his darker half in check. "I'm not sure how you're involved with all that's been going on with Soul Edge, but I'm going to put a stop to it right now." With that, Kali-Yuga twirled in his hands and struck the ground as he stood ready to fight.

Zasalamel's golden eye glimmered within his white hood and a smirk came on his face. "I can assure you that I play a much bigger part than you could possibly imagine. Your part, however, is insignificant. Everything has been put into motion. A minor hindrance such as you can do nothing to stop it… as we've already proven with our last bout. Nonetheless, your arrival is unexpected and time is short," he said as he looked beyond the young man to the door which led to the room where another battle was taking place. Returning his gaze to the devout monk, he held his scythe at the ready. "This time I will have to be certain that I kill you." Unable to restrain himself any longer, Kilik charged at his boastful enemy.

The large scythe moved quickly to defend its wielder from the incoming staff. In retaliation, the protruding blade arced to strike at the young man's exposed torso. A short backwards hop allowed him to evade the swing before the dull edge was thrust into his stomach.

Recovering quickly from the attack, Kilik managed to avoid the scythe with a side step. From there he sent his staff into the dark-skinned man's chest, causing him to double over. Jumping up to lay on Zasalamel's back, the young man twisted around and raised himself up until he could go no higher. Allowing himself to fall, he latched onto a muscled arm and dragged the connected body to the ground.

Soon after tumbling, Zasalamel rolled away from his opponent, barely avoiding the staff as it slammed down on the spot where he had lain. Back on his feet, he realized that the young man's abilities had greatly improved since their last encounter, likely to avoid another defeat. If he wanted to take care of this variable and still have time to accomplish his goal he would have to fight much harder.

Kilik backed away as the scythe began to swing erratically in his direction. Doing his best to avoid the weapon's strikes, he only occasionally had to raise Kali-Yuga in defense. Soon, however, the dark-skinned man began to mix up his attacks with kicks. Though Kilik was able to evade them for a while, a cartwheeling motion was flawlessly followed by a boot thrusting into his chest, sending him back a few steps.

Zasalamel took advantage of the new distance between them by spinning around and swinging his scythe wide, trying to send the point of its blade into the young man's chest. It did not reach that destination as Kilik held his staff up to catch the steel extension.

Not to be denied, Zasalamel pulled back on his weapon, hooking the staff held tightly in his opponent's grasp and taking him off balance. While the young man stumbled toward him, he drew his scythe around and swung it along the ground. The sweep took Kilik off his feet and sent him to his back.

The dark-skinned man stood just beside Kilik's body, spinning his scythe overhead before trying to drive its pointed staff into his opponent's stomach. Seeing this coming, the young man rolled away and swung his legs to kick up onto his feet.

Holding their weapons at the ready, the two warriors circled each other, trying to devise a suitable plan of attack. In order for anything to be effective they would need to catch the other off guard, which both had learned was incredibly difficult to do. As one stopped his pacing so too did his opponent and they charged for another confrontation.

Both of the large weapons came together and pushed against each other as their wielders struggled to determine the stronger. Suddenly, Kali-Yuga slid downward to smash its end into the dark man's foot. It then swung up to hit his jaw. Finally, Kilik brought the staff back to power a thrust and send it into his opponent's chest.

Zasalamel fell back a few steps, sinking to one knee and clutching where the staff had impacted his ribs. This one had gotten much better and now had the capacity to hurt him. He was not, however, capable of destroying him, and so he would have to be stopped here.

"Impressive," he said. "I was not expecting such skill. But I did not come all this way to die _here_, and you have only seen the slightest hint of my power." With that, he held out his free hand and the purple aura that surrounded him earlier began to envelope the young man before him.

Kilik struggled as the aura lifted him a few inches off the ground and straightened out his limbs. It wasn't long before he was stretched to his limit and it felt like every muscle in his body was trying to tear itself apart. In the end he was left completely helpless and could do nothing against the dark-skinned man.

Zasalamel wasted no time in making his way over to his opponent as he hung in the air. He stopped for just a second to stare at the youth in front of him before spinning around and driving the blade of his scythe into the young man's chest. The second the steel pierced his skin the aura around Kilik's body disappeared and he fell to his knees, slowly slipping into death.

Without looking at him, Zasalamel gave his final words to the young man. "Be thankful that you are so easily capable of death. If only you knew the pains I have gone through to reclaim that gift." With nothing more to say, he withdrew his scythe and walked away. He waved his hand at the doors causing them to open and he made his way towards the fight ahead, ready to complete his task.

* * *

_Author's Notes: A very short chapter, but it served its purpose._

_Despite needing Kilik to die for the sake of my other story, I wouldn't have held out much hope for him in this fight anyway. For one, Xianghua was with him when he got the tar beaten out of him the last time (how she came out unscathed is a bit of an issue for me) and he still lost. Secondly, I don't think that Zasalamel is really fighting with all he's got 90 percent of the time. After all, he does have some magic mojo on his side, which is largely why I used it here, to show his magical awesome._

_The finale is next and there's going to be a big brawl between some of the major players. We also get to see how I leave things before Converging Souls. Tune in next time for the conclusion, but leave a review before then._


	10. Finale

_Author's Notes: This is it. The final battle in my version of Soul Calibur 3's events. I don't mention the specific fighters in the title here because that would ruin half the fun of the introduction to the fight. Once this is over everything will be in place for the story that sparked this, "Converging Souls". I hope you enjoy it._

_Disclaimer: One last time now. Say it with me. I don't own Soul Calibur._

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Finale

After much effort, Xianghua managed to open a hole in the bars of her cage. Taking no time to rest, she charged through the corridors to battle with Soul Edge. But before she could make it across the cathedral she came upon the most terrible sight she dared to imagine for the second time in her life. Lying before her in the empty room was Kilik, pierced through the chest and nearly drained of blood.

Forgetting everything else, Xianghua rushed over and knelt down to hold the completely limp body close to her, letting the tears come in torrents. His warmth was not entirely gone but his spirit had passed.

The last time that she'd seen this, Kilik had been severely beaten and rendered comatose. He was alive, but the event had completely shaken Xianghua's resolve and sense of duty. Nothing in this world mattered to her if she couldn't have him.

After leaving Kilik with Edgemaster, she trained under an old friend of the teacher to get back her strength of mind. Xianghua learned to let the dark moments of life pass through her and maintain her inner peace. Her resolve reached a new level… but she never expected to face the same tragedy again so soon.

Worse still, Kilik was now dead and she was to blame. She had saved him from the minor setback of the cage only to push him on to whatever death he had received here. And all of this before either of them could get past their foolish inhibitions and admit their love for one another. The guilt and sadness and chaos within Xianghua's mind were all too much for her to bear as she wept over the corpse.

Doing her best to remember her mental training, Xianghua became aware of the outside world again. She could now hear the ongoing struggle just within the next room. Gathering up her strength, she prepared to do what she and her companion had come here to do. It was what Kilik would have wanted.

Through the open door she could see the outer rim of the cathedral. Great columns held up the edge of the ceiling where walls were absent. The floor was a massive square of glistening marble with a rushing river to the left and right, dropping off beyond the columns.

Within this room Xianghua saw the black man she remembered as Zasalamel fighting off the embodiment of Soul Edge whom she'd battled 4 years ago, the Azure Knight, Nightmare. Resting against one of the columns was a man in red with a scar across his right eye. When the other two lost their weapons to the river in a struggle he began to charge, holding tightly to his massive sword.

Before he could be reached, Zasalamel held out his open palms toward his opponents. A purple aura came over the red and blue warriors, tossing them both into the columns on either side of the platform. They were dragged upwards until they were pulled forward and slammed into the stone again. The auras disappeared and the fighters fell to the ground, not moving after a few seconds.

Zasalamel looked to the bodies. "So much for the cursed one," he said before turning to the one in plate armor and continuing, "… and his curse. But now that they have served their purpose they are of no use to me." Standing in the center of the room his hand sent an aura around a large item covered completely by a shroud and brought it towards himself. "All that is left now is the magnificent power that will end my cycle of rebirth and grant me my death."

Xianghua, who had stood at the door all this time and shocked at the reappearance of the two most foul beings she had ever come across, was stunned to see the cover removed to reveal the tangled entities of Soul Calibur and Soul Edge. Seconds later the soul embrace began to glow as the dark-skinned man absorbed their essence.

When the swords were gone Zasalamel seemed to be left struggling with the newfound power within him. Energy danced around the outer limits of his form and he began to take on the same glow the legendary weapons had. "Gah… Such power… overwhelming," were the last words he uttered before the glow completely enveloped him.

Protruding from his back came the now disconnected forms of Soul Edge and Soul Calibur. They hovered above his head, revolving around each other, until Zasalamel exploded in a burst of energy, sending them their separate ways. Soul Edge embedded itself within the column above Nightmare and Soul Calibur pierced the door beside Xianghua. Meanwhile, standing where the dark-skinned sorcerer once had was something new altogether.

Flesh was absent from this monster's features. Thick finned bones made up the entirety of its form, except for the glowing orb set in its open stomach. Its head was a skull with ram's horns curling out the sides. Despite having two eye sockets only the left contained a glowing yellow sphere while the other was left hollow. In its right hand was a scythe made out of the same bony material as himself with an ethereal glowing edge.

Once more set before a demonic foe, Xianghua found herself again. Pulling Soul Calibur from the door beside her she rushed forward and made her presence known to the skeletal figure. "I will defeat you with my own hands!"

The creature's single eye focused on her, seeming unsure if he should care about her presence. His ethereal voice soon came in reply. "Such a fragile existence you mortals have… and you would throw that away to challenge me?"

"You'll soon see just how pitiful we mortals are," came the voice of the yellow-haired warrior as he slowly returned to his feet at the base of the column. Picking up his blade, Requiem, he stood beside the girl carrying Soul Calibur to face the monstrosity. While this was happening no one noticed a clawed hand taking hold of its preferred weapon.

The skeleton scoffed at their stand. "Ha! Numbers are insignificant. None can stand before me. Now… you shall have a taste of my pow-." His words were interrupted as the bony blade of Soul Edge was thrust from behind through the glowing sphere at his center. He howled in pain and struggled as the color drained from his power source into the sword before exploding in a blast of energy, much like his predecessor, and leaving nothing behind.

The noble warriors looked on as Nightmare basked in the glory of his fresh kill, the complete form of Soul Edge within his grasp. "Oh, Siegfried," he said, addressing the blonde knight. "You would not believe the strength I've received from taking that one's soul. He would have surely destroyed you." He paused now to straighten out his monstrous right arm and point his weapon at the man before him. He continued with a sense of malicious glee in his voice, "But now that pleasure falls to me."

While the armored one was distracted by the one standing beside her, Xianghua charged forward. Nightmare quickly deflected the incoming blade with its eternal nemesis and kicked the girl aside. A laugh escaped his mouth as she hit the ground. "I see this one carries Soul Calibur again. A pity for her that she comes to battle this time with doubt in her eyes." Turning back to his former host, he had to adjust himself to block his attack. Soul Edge struggled against Requiem as he continued to boast. "Ah, but there's no trace of uncertainty in your eyes, Siegfried. You don't have a single doubt that you're going to kill me. That's what makes this fun."

Having heard enough, Siegfried sank low before raising a fist behind Nightmare's guard and into the jaw of his helm. The blow ended the stalemate and sent the one in blue armor back a few steps. "There's a reason for that certainty. I refuse to die while you still walk." With that, he sent his zweihänder in a wide horizontal arc.

Before the blade could travel far enough to reach its target it was caught within the claws of the Azure Knight's monstrous right arm. "You don't get to choose when you die in battle," Nightmare said as he tossed the sword's weight into the air, almost taking Siegfried off the ground. The blonde warrior held fast to his weapon, however, and tried to bring it down on his opponent. Unfortunately, it was blocked by Soul Edge, leaving him open for a kick to his ribs which sent him sprawling back.

Meanwhile, Xianghua had been trying to refocus herself after the monster's words. If she wasn't overcome by doubt before, she certainly was now. It was only after his last taunt that she found something to cling to; there was already someone who hadn't chosen to die today and his memory would have her give every last breath to stop the evil she faced. Rising to her feet, she charged at the Azure Knight with a yell.

Nightmare turned to see the girl coming at him, filled with a mixture of determination and rage. He didn't think on it long, however, before gripping Soul Edge in both hands and swiping it hi her direction. He was surprised to watch her leap over his attack and flip over to smash her feet into his face.

Through a combination of his heavy armor and the amount of power he now carried within him, Nightmare was hardly fazed by this attack. He dropped the weight of Soul Edge into his human-like arm so that when Xianghua reached the ground his hideous claw was free to grab her by the waist. Gripping tightly, he swung her over his head and slammed her into the ground on the other side, spinning as he fell with her to thrust his "fist" into her chest.

Nightmare rose to get a view of the broken body at his feet, but as soon as he stood an arm wrapped around his neck and forced him to lean back. "You're not going anywhere," came Siegfried's voice above him while he was trapped facing the inside of the armpit.

Siegfried tried to lift the body off the ground so that he might tilt it back to drop it on its head, but could not get a proper grip for it while his opponent violently resisted. After struggling with this for a few seconds the knight's clawed hand smashed into his face, causing him to drop his enemy. His doppelganger was quick to return to his feet and continue the fight.

Requiem and Soul Edge bounced off of each other as the conflict raged. Though Siegfried was mostly familiar with Nightmare's style, having used it for those 7 years of his life, the attacks now came with much more power than he knew how to deal with and he was forced to back up, eventually finding himself at the column he had been held against earlier. In the brief instant of surprise when he found himself backed into a corner his opponent took advantage with a thrust of his shoulder, pressing him between the forceful blow and the unmoving stone. Once released, the yellow-haired knight fell to the ground, gasping for air.

Nightmare laughed boastfully over what he soon expected to be a corpse when he again heard a yell from behind him. He managed to step aside in time to avoid a killing blow, but suffered a long cut along his monstrous arm, filled with searing pain due to the weapon that had caused it. Once again he had forgotten about the girl in his lust for a final battle with his former host. With the injury he'd just received, she had become more than just a simple nuisance and he resolved to get rid of her before he returned his attention to Siegfried.

The battle of the legendary blades sparked anew as they danced around one another. It soon became apparent, however, that Xianghua's agility was not enough to best the power the Azure Knight now possessed and she was persistently pushed back. They had almost reached the other side of the floor when Nightmare managed to catch her sword arm. He would have killed her right then and there had he not been startled by the moans of his likeness behind him.

Spinning the girl around, Nightmare trapped her within his grasp and forced her to hold her own sword against her throat. He kept her between himself and the warrior in red, watching him rise to his feet and realize the situation. "I'm certain that this one would bleed quite nicely, Siegfried," he said, pressing the blue steel into her skin. "All you have to do to find out is step closer."

Siegfried grit his teeth, doubting his chances of keeping her from getting killed if he simply charged. "Let her go," he said. "This is supposed to be between you and me."

"Agreed," came Nightmare's reply as his eyes went up and down Soul Calibur's edge, still feeling the pain from the cut it had given him. The absolute last thing he wanted was for that weapon to get into Siegfried's hands. It had to be removed from the playing field. "But for us to be alone… I've got to get rid of _**her**_!" With that, he lifted Xianghua off the ground and tossed her into the banister at the cathedral's edge. She hit the top and fell over, barely taking hold of one of the rails to avoid falling to her death. The blonde warrior had little time for shock at her circumstance before having to defend himself.

Nightmare swung Soul Edge fast and hard, pounding away at his opponent's defenses. When brute force did not get the immediate results he desired he feigned a high swing before spinning around to sweep out the warrior's feet. Without taking the time to boast, he sent his weapon down for the kill, only to have Requiem pulled into the way.

After the quick block Siegfried rolled away and took a defensive pose, crouching low and seeming to hide behind his massive blade. From there he rushed forward to push his enemy with the wide girth of steel. Unable to see in his position, however, the initial charge was simply avoided. When he realized this he spun himself around to gather momentum to swing his heavy weapon like a club.

The Azure Knight was tossed back by the attack but managed to stay on his feet, stabilizing himself a few inches from the rushing waters just beyond the floor's edge. A cackle rang from the blue helm as the doppelganger was thrilled at the even conflict, but still craved more from the one he faced. "You'll have to do much better than that if you wish to be rid of me."

"Shut up," Siegfried cried. "I was forced to listen to you whispering in my ear for 7 years. Now I've had enough of the terrors you've put me through. I'm done with murder, I'm done with nightmares, and I'm done with you."

Nightmare's laughter returned in reply. "Oh, Siegfried. You blame me for every drop of blood on your hands," he said with a mock sympathy to his voice. After a short pause he continued, "But no matter what I forced you to do… it was still only you who killed your father."

"ENOUGH!!" yelled Siegfried at the top of his lungs, unable to take anymore. Dragging his weapon behind him, he ran forward at top speed. Once close enough he swung the blade forward, knocking aside the muscled sword hastily raised in defense. He did not stop with his charge, however.

Siegfried tackled into Nightmare, sending them both over the edge and into the fast moving river. They were quickly taken by its current, which pushed them out of the cathedral and over the waterfall.

Meanwhile, Xianghua still clung for dear life to the miniature pillars of the guardrail. Only after the chaos of battle was gone did she manage to draw the strength necessary to pull herself up. This was mostly made difficult and time consuming because she refused to use her right arm, unwilling to release the blade that had long ago been given to her by her mother.

Once safely on the ground Xianghua returned to Kilik's body. After another fit of tears, she decided what needed to be done.

Since traveling with the corpse would likely result in disease, she buried him in a nearby plain. With a final good-bye she wrapped up Kali-Yuga and the Dvapara-Yuga shard and made her way to Edgemaster's home within the mountains. And on the long journey back all she could think of was how his death had been her fault, how she couldn't protect him, and how she wasn't even strong enough to avenge him. All these thoughts swirled around in her mind to destroy the faith in her abilities she once had.

Along the path of the river passing through the cathedral Siegfried woke along its banks. Rising to his feet, he dared to hope that he might be rid of his Nightmare for a few brief seconds. The fact that he could still feel their shared connection soon dampened that hope, however. He could sense him somewhere on the horizon.

As he turned around to see if he might see the monster a fire began to burn within him. It was one thing when they shared a body and he was somewhat present for all the terror he was responsible for, but now that they were separate this terrible thing that mimicked his form was free to roam and massacre as he pleased. The thought of that was almost too much to bear and Siegfried vowed that every remaining breath in his body would be dedicated to finding and destroying Nightmare.

Closing his eyes and focusing on their connection, Siegfried soon raced off into the distance, following in the wake of the enemy spawned from himself.

* * *

_Author's Notes: Oh, so much to say, and this time I think I'm gonna actually take the time to say it. Let's start at the beginning and work from there._

_Xianghua finding Kilik's dead body on the way to the battle was a necessity for the ultimate sake of my story. Facing the same tragedy twice within so short a timeframe was just the thing to break the focus and drive she had worked so hard to forge. Basically, I needed her to lose faith in herself so that when she had Soul Calibur in her hands she couldn't bring herself to chase after Soul Edge, believing that if she couldn't save Kilik then how could she save the world._

_Zasalamel got all the pieces into the places he needed them to be, but in the end it was him that was unprepared. The power contained within Soul Edge and Soul Calibur was much more than he ever could have guessed, spurring his transformation into what might have been the vicious foe, Abyss. The weakness of having a visible power core makes his appearance short lived, but necessary for the separation of the blades. I'm on the fence on whether he is permanently dead, since he does have the reincarnation thing going for him, but his soul was absorbed into Soul Edge, making me unsure as to what exactly would be reincarnated. In any case, he's out of the picture for at least 15 years._

_Siegfried fights valiantly after being tracked down by his double and meeting with the man who (re)created him. The main focus for me using him in this fight was to get the rivalry between him and Nightmare down (but keeping the ending a draw) and coming up with a way for Xianghua to be removed from the fight without dying but making sure that he didn't get Soul Calibur. The ending with him tackling Nightmare into the waterfall reminds me of Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty, though that author was genuinely trying to kill those characters at the time, while I just wanted to highlight a rivalry. ;P Siegfried gets no peace as he must chase after Nightmare for the sake of his own redemption, only to die at his hands in "Converging Souls"._

_Nightmare gets to be the big man in this fight. His dominance is due to the immense power he drained from Abyss, since I've stated elsewhere that I think Siegfried should be familiar enough with his style to easily defend against it. I make Nightmare out to be a bit of a battle-hungry master of psychology here, degrading Xianghua and taunting Siegfried (whom he seeks a great final battle with where he would prove his superiority). I especially like his last words to Siegfried, which came to me somewhere in the middle of the night. That really sums up a lot of the dynamic that those two share in the canon._

_I'm really happy with how this entire series of events turned out. It was great practice for me and I think I may have made a few fans along the way. Perhaps a few of them will search for me elsewhere for future works as this will likely be my last entry to this website. I'll still be here to read, but writing will be submitted to a more close-knit community and focused on original characters (debatable) and storyline (also debatable)._


End file.
